Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Kids With Mild Or No COVID Symptoms More Contagious Than Sick Adults, Study Finds
USA Today: 'Silent Spreaders' Of COVID-19: Kids Who Seem Healthy May Be More Contagious Than Sick Adults, Study Says
A new study adds to growing evidence that children are not immune to COVID-19 and may even play a larger role in community spread than previously thought. Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and Mass General Hospital for Children found that among 192 children, 49 tested positive for the coronavirus and had significantly higher levels of virus in their airways than hospitalized adults in intensive care units, according to the study published Thursday in the Journal of Pediatrics. (Rodriguez, 8/20)
Harvard Gazette: Children’s Role In Spread Of Virus Bigger Than Thought
In the most comprehensive study of COVID-19 pediatric patients to date, researchers provide critical data showing that children play a larger role in the community spread of COVID-19 than previously thought. In a study of 192 children ages 0-22, 49 children tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and an additional 18 children had late-onset, COVID-19-related illness. The infected children were shown to have a significantly higher level of virus in their airways than hospitalized adults in ICUs for COVID-19 treatment, according to Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Mass General Hospital for Children (MGHfC). (8/20)
Reuters: As U.S. Schools Reopen, Concerns Grow That Kids Spread Coronavirus
Dr. [Alessio] Fasano and colleagues at Boston’s Massachusetts General and MassGeneral Hospital for Children found that infected children have a significantly higher level of virus in their airways than adults hospitalized in intensive care units for COVID-19 treatment. The high viral levels were found in infants through young adults, although most of the participants were age 11 to 17. The study, published on Thursday in the Journal of Pediatrics, involved 192 participants ages 0-22 who were seen at urgent care clinics for suspected COVID-19. Forty-nine of them - a quarter of the total - tested positive for the virus. (Beasley, 8/20)
